Nguma-Monene
' Nguma-monene' ("large python" in Lingala language[1]) is a cryptid supposedly living in the Republic of Congo, described as being like a large lizard with a serrated ridge on its back. Two bite of sightings exist that were done near the Dongu-Mataba (tributary of the Ubangi River) in The Republic of the Congo. The first was done in 1961; the second ten years later in 1971 by pastor Joseph Ellis. He estimated the length of the (visible) tailpart as 10 meters long (equal to his dugout, no neck or head could be seen), and a diameter of 0.5 to 1 meter. Its color was tending to greyish-brown. When back in the village, it appeared that the subject was taboo. The above and other sightings were gathered by University of Chicago biologist Roy P. Mackal, who led two expeditions to the Likouala swamps in the Republic of Congo, while searching for theMokele-mbembe.[2] Mackal concluded that the animal has a low-slung body, and therefore is more like a lizard than a snake, as "Ellis was positive the animal never raised itself sufficiently after leaving the water". Mackal also noted that the animal's triangular- or diamond-shaped ridges were similar (but smaller) to those from the Mbielu-Mbielu-Mbielu, but not the animals themselves. This is a common misreading from his book and mixed up at a lot of webpages. Possibly the same animal is described in the 1958 book On the Track of Unknown Animals by Bernard Heuvelmans. In 1928, a snakelike animal called Ngakoula-ngou or Badigui was reported in the Ubangi-Shari area. This report was made by game inspectorLucien Blancou, who later in 1954 also made the first report of the Emela-Ntouka.[3] According to this report, it killed a hippo in the Brouchouchou river without leaving any sign of a wound. It also crushed a manioc field, causing tracks from 1 to 1.5 meter wide. Similar reports from 1932 (at Bouzoum) and 1934 exist, in which it is named Diba, Songo, Mourou-ngou and Badigui. In the 1934 report, an old man had especially come to see Blancou, as he was told that he showed interest in the animal. The old man narrated that in about 1890 he was fishing in the Kibi stream (Bakala district), and saw the Badigui eating from a tree, called "roro". He described the neck to be "as thick as a man's thigh", and the underneath of the neck was lighter colored. He could not see the full body, only about 8 meters of the neck. He also said "it does not frequent places where you find hippos, for it kills them". Finally in 1945, the animal's tracks were spotted near Ndélé, by Blancou's gun carrier. Unknown LIZARD of Central Africa. Etymology: Lingala (Bantu), “large boa.” Variant names: Ngonde monene, Nyama monene, Yoli (Baka/Ubangi). Physical description: Huge, serpentine lizard. Length, 30–50 feet. Body is 2–3 feet in diameter. Grayish-brown. Head and neck are snakelike. Forked tongue. Serrated ridge along the spine. Short legs. Behavior: Amphibious. Moves rapidly through swamps. Eats birds and monkeys. Distribution: Eastern Cameroon; Motaba River, Republic of the Congo. Significant sightings: In 1961, the eldest sister of First Secretary of the General Assembly Michel Zabatou was bathing in the Motaba River when she saw a snakelike head and neck emerge from the water about 50 feet away. Villagers ran to the spot when she cried out, and they all watched the animal moving in the water. It flicked its forked tongue in and out as it moved upstream. In November 1971, Joseph Ellis was making his way along the Motaba River in a dugout canoe when he saw a 30-foot serpentine animal with a serrated back swim across the river about 200 feet away and move out of the river and into the jungle. Possible explanations: (1) A surviving dolichosaur, a member of a group of marine reptiles intermediate between snakes and lizards that lived in the Late Cretaceous, 95 million years ago, suggested by Roy Mackal. These animals had long, slender, snakelike bodies and reduced limbs. Fossils have been found in England, Yugoslavia, Germany, and Lebanon. (2) The Nile monitor (Varanus niloticus), a semiaquatic lizard that grows up to 7 feet long and is found throughout much of sub- Saharan Africa, including the Congo basin. When disturbed, it often swims away to the safety of overhanging vegetation. However, its back is smooth, not serrated. (3) An unknown species of elongated Monitor lizard (Family Varanidae), also suggested by Roy Mackal. Category:All Cryptids Category:Snakes Category:Reptile Category:Africa Category:Water Creatures Category:Lizards Category:Giant cryptid Category:Carnivore Category:Lake Monsters Category:Swamp Monsters Category:Crocodilians